NEW ORLEANS – UIC fell behind in the first inning Sunday, but the Flames scored eight unanswered runs against Prairie View A&M with four in the third and four more in the fourth before finishing off the Panthers at Wesley Barrow Stadium, 10-7.
 
The Flames (3-1) won three-of-four at the season-opening Andre Dawson Classic with the only loss coming by a single run in extra innings at New Orleans on Friday night. The weekend also featured a shutout in the first game of the campaign and a thrilling eight-run ninth inning Saturday in front of a national television audience on MLB Network.
 
Scott Ota homered for the first time this season Sunday and drove in a game-high three runs for UIC. Joshua Figueroa tallied a game-high three hits, while he and teammates Bowen Ogata and Aaron Ackerman each delivered two RBI.
 
Joey Fredrickson was credited with his second victory in as many days out of the bullpen for the Flames. The redshirt junior did not allow a run in 2.1 innings of relief Sunday.
 
How It Happened
Prairie View A&M got on the scoreboard first without the benefit of a hit in the top of the first inning. The Panthers used a hit batsman, two walks, a sacrifice fly and a wild pitch to score twice in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead.
 
The Flames answered in a big way in the bottom of the third. Ryan Lin-Peistrup and Derrick Patrick each walked before Matt Botthcer bunted his way aboard to load the bases. Ota delivered the first of three RBI with a sacrifice fly to left field. The next batter, Ogata, hit his own sac fly to right that scored Patrick and tied the game. After another base-on-balls was issued to Ackerman, Figueroa delivered a two-run double to center field that gave UIC its first lead of the day at 4-2.
 
The home team Sunday hung another crooked number on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth. Thomas Norton walked to open the inning and made his way to third base via a sacrifice and a wild pitch. Patrick plated him with an RBI groundout. Ota doubled home Patrick before Ogata drove in Ota with a single to center. Ackerman kept the line moving with a base hit to right that scored Ogata. The UIC was thrown out at the plate to end the inning trying to score on a single from Figueroa.
 
Trailing by six, the Panthers put together a comeback in the top of the sixth. PVAMU scored four times in the inning to pull within two. The Panthers had four hits in the inning, including two that went for extra bases.
 
The Flames got two of the runs right back in the bottom of the sixth to extend the lead back to four. Ota went deep for the first time this season with one away and back-to-back doubles from Ogata and Ackerman produced another run for UIC.
 
A leadoff walk came around to bite the Flames in the top of the ninth, but that would be the only run PVAMU would muster and UIC hung on to win, 10-7.
 
Beyond the Box Score

• The Flames scored a season-high 10 runs Sunday. Last season UIC pushed across double-digit runs nine times.
• Seven Flames made their UIC debuts on Sunday. Left-handed pitcher Braeden Toikka started for the Flames, while fellow southpaw Nick Simonian also appeared in relief. Ben Tharp, Dylan Gilbert, Riley Hebert, Trey Beckman and Chris Macahon all got in the game for head coach Mike Dee and the Flames. Hebert drew a walk as a pinch hitter and Macahon picked up a pinch-hit single in his first collegiate plate appearance.
• Alex Padilla's streak of scoreless appearances ended at 19. The redshirt junior had not allowed a run in 25.2 consecutive innings going back to last season, but the Panthers scratched out one in a non-save situation Sunday.
• Joey Fredrickson is 2-0 out of the bullpen, while only pitching 3.2 innings over two games for the Flames.
• UIC had four players bat .412 or better during the Andre Dawson Classic. Scott Ota, Aaron Ackerman, Bowen Ogata and Joshua Figueroa combined to collect 20 RBI and 12 extra-base hits for the Flames.
• UIC improved to 5-3 at the Andre Dawson Classic over the last two seasons and 2-1 against Prairie View A&M at the event in New Orleans.

 Up Next

• UIC will travel to Edinburg, Texas, next weekend for a three-game set against UTRGV.
• The series opens on Friday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m.